Group Report - Willard 5/23

[RockyRaab]

There were half a crowd of BFTers at Willard today. I'll let each one report on their own. I can say that it was slow for me. I stayed in the marina the whole day, and had two nice crappie on. Lost one at the boat while I was trying to get the net out and netted the other. Also had on two Yuuuuuge carp, both of which hit a white marabou Roadrunner with a Gulp minnow trailer. Naturally, caught both on my 6# test ultralight rod. One took off and cut me off under the docks. I managed to get the other one out into open water, where it took me 15 minutes to wear it down. Released unharmed after a gillectomy and burp. Photo later.

I met Big John the Chinese man while having lunch ashore. He came over to admire my boat, then said "You look like pilot." I admitted that I had been one, and he said he had seen a lot of US pilots in Vietnam. I admitted again that I fit that description. He said that he had lived in Vietnam for two years, but "I Chinese. EVEYBODY shoot me! I come here!" We both had a good laugh. That's him there in the southeast corner, on a lawn chair. Say hi if you see him. He's fun to listen to.

Interestingly, my one keeper crappie was an unspawned female. I would have bet that they all spawned during the bad weather last week - and nobody was fishing. Finding an unspawned female when the water is in the mid-60s seems bizarre to me.
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Glad you got out...and survived the abuse of the carp. They be some gorillas in that there pond.

No real surprise on the gravid female slab. I have caught them inside the harbor as late as mid June with future progeny still aboard. In their infinite fishy wisdom not all members of the species spawn at the exact same time. Like other species there may be several waves of spawners to help insure that not all the eggs are in one "basket"...to prevent a whole year class being wiped out by bad timing, poor survival conditions, etc. And in a year of up and down water temps the prolonged spawn period is even more likely.

Lemme know the next time you wanna go afloat and I might join ya...if you be falling apart.
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[Squawminnow]

I fished Eagle Beach area last night out of my yak. It was nice to finally enjoy the weather rather than deal with it. I boated two Crappie and lost a third to a brush pile. It took quite a bit of searching to find any at all.
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[RockyRaab]

Photo addition.



So calm even the sailors were paddling.



The Garp.
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[FatBiker]

Rocky, I fished the west wall from the light pole back to the South Marina today. Managed one catfish on my flyrod and got a couple big ugly carp along the South dike on my way back to the Marina.


Larry
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[Paddler]

[quote RockyRaab]There were half a crowd of BFTers at Willard today. I'll let each one report on their own. I can say that it was slow for me. I stayed in the marina the whole day, and had two nice crappie on. Lost one at the boat while I was trying to get the net out and netted the other. Also had on two Yuuuuuge carp, both of which hit a white marabou Roadrunner with a Gulp minnow trailer. Naturally, caught both on my 6# test ultralight rod. One took off and cut me off under the docks. I managed to get the other one out into open water, where it took me 15 minutes to wear it down. Released unharmed after a gillectomy and burp. Photo later.

I met Big John the Chinese man while having lunch ashore. He came over to admire my boat, then said "You look like pilot." I admitted that I had been one, and he said he had seen a lot of US pilots in Vietnam. I admitted again that I fit that description. He said that he had lived in Vietnam for two years, but "I Chinese. EVEYBODY shoot me! I come here!" We both had a good laugh. That's him there in the southeast corner, on a lawn chair. Say hi if you see him. He's fun to listen to.

Interestingly, my one keeper crappie was an unspawned female. I would have bet that they all spawned during the bad weather last week - and nobody was fishing. Finding an unspawned female when the water is in the mid-60s seems bizarre to me.[/quote]

That must have been you in the Hobie, nice to almost meet you. WB sure has been tough this year, not marking or catching much. Here's my friend Ed with his walleye:
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[FishinFool53]

I didn't realize that was you. Nice battle with the carp. I was in the green sportsman pontoon. I ended up catching 3 small mouth bass and four crappie. It was tough catching today. Too calm but alot of fun.
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[RockyRaab]

Paddler, I'd have talked a bit more with you at the cleaning station if I'd been there longer. Cleaning my one crappie didn't take long. Your wallie and wiper were nice.

Hoping Ryan as well as Jeff/Jill post here. They were out there, also. Along with almost as many BFTers as were at the floatilla!

I'm no longer the only Hobie angler around, but I'm the only "shark" Hobie.
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[perchound]

I thought that was you as well, I was in the black and tan smokercraft next to you when that carp broke you off under the docks. I fished for crappie for 3 hours then chased walleye for 5 hours and only caught one catfish for the whole day. Willard is extremely tuff this year, course we all knew the high water level would certainly change things. However I do believe the walleye and crappie numbers are down this year.
Next time I run into you out there I will speak up and introduce myself. It's looking like the dwr really needs to think about doing something with the carp numbers out there for sure, they are everywhere.
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[RockyRaab]

Please do. Always glad to meet and greet afloat.
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[moby_dick]

How was the water clarity? I'm headed out today and heard rumors that the water is really muddy right now
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[r2u2]

I love reading the Willard fishing reports.( Bad day, water too dirty, weather poor, nope didn't catch any, lots of fishing just no catching, I got one for the 5hours I was on the water the list goes on). That makes me feel good knowing I am not the only one having a hard time.

I opted for the south end yesterday. I wanted to anchor up and try for cats and wipers. By the time I got just past the feed lot I felt the wind come up a bit so I decided to head back closer to the marina.

I did get one hit trolling up there but that was it.

Thought I saw Larry (Fat Biker) we were booth headed in the same direction then he turned off and I never saw him again. I wasn't real sure that was him until he posted.

The good news; I left with one Walleye.

RJ
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[DKStroutfitter]

My buddy and I fished WB this morning.
We didn't get a bite.
Tried inside the N Marina for about half an hour and then trolled the Freeway Bay area over to the SW Corner.
Marked fish but no bites.

This is our third trip and each one has been worse than the trip before it.
High water and a bit of a weather front today may have been part of the problem.

Talked to 2 other boaters that had the same skunk.

Afternoon has been better for me for the past 3 weeks but OI had to be home by 2:00 pm today.
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[JamesPond007]

Hello All- I just stumbled onto this site and appreciate all the good information I've read thus far. I also appreciate the recent Willard reports. I've fished Willard twice so far this year and have failed to get on the scoreboard.
According to my fishing journal from last year, myself (and several other folks) were catching quite a few crappie at this exact time last spring.
Always interesting how varying weather patterns, water depths, temperature, etc. can really change things up from year to year. I've always kind of set my watch to Mother's Day as a time barometer for catching crappie at Willard, but that system didn't work out so well for me in 2017.

Look forward to getting to know some of you.
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[RockyRaab]

You too, Pond. James Pond.

In response to an earlier question, water clarity at Willard is pretty good in and near the north marina, but it may not be quite as good near the inlet in the south.
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[Paddler]

We covered 18 miles trolling yesterday, by GPS. Four lures out, covering somewhere around a 100' span. The calculates out to about 9,000,000 square of water feet swept. The water clarity was probably the best I've ever seen at WB. There was debris in spots, but overall it was really nice. We ran everything, 1/4 oz Thin Fins 40' back, SR 5s, 7s, 8s, Fat Rap, Thunderstick Jr's at 14', through CD6 Walley Divers down 16'. The one walleye came on an SR 7 in Black/Silver down 11' south of the Island, the wiper came on a Wallet Diver CD6 in a discontinued color (purple, pink and white) down ~16' in the SW corner. Zippo out in front of the North Marina, Freeway Bay or the Feedlot. Tried out by the Lightpole and off the North Dike last trip, nothing doing. Not sure what's going on up there this year, but it's not good.
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[Squawminnow]

What's going on? The dozens of fine folks wearing huge round sun hats who lined the dikes last Mar until Sept ate well. It's hard to argue that Willard got a ton of pressure in 2016 with most anglers being successful. I read somewhere that the DWR will not be stocking Wipers this year there and expected a slim harvest. With those glutton fish be so susceptible to mussels I think the overall numbers took a pretty good hit last summer. I took a few limits home myself last year but I certainly threw back way more than I kept. I'm still scoreless on Wipers for 2017.
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[Paddler]

[quote Squawminnow]What's going on? The dozens of fine folks wearing huge round sun hats who lined the dikes last Mar until Sept ate well. It's hard to argue that Willard got a ton of pressure in 2016 with most anglers being successful. I read somewhere that the DWR will not be stocking Wipers this year there and expected a slim harvest. With those glutton fish be so susceptible to mussels I think the overall numbers took a pretty good hit last summer. I took a few limits home myself last year but I certainly threw back way more than I kept. I'm still scoreless on Wipers for 2017.[/quote]

I've heard the concern regarding wipers. Catching a limit, taking them home, returning to catch another limit the same day. That wouldn't impact the walleye so much, you wouldn't think. Two years ago the walleye were amazing, last year just fair, this year tough. Don't know if there was a lot of winter kill in 1015-16, or if it was just dilution, or what. Just think we should be doing better up there, it's remarkable how few fish I'm marking. I may have to give Starvation a try.

I remember a guy catching a couple of limits per day at Yuba a long time ago before it crashed. He'd troll Thin Fins on lead core line and just killed the walleye. Big fish, too.
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[Tin-Can]

Well now I don't feel quite so bad. Reading all these fishing, no catching reports from WB. We used to unofficially compare who had most fish caught. Now maybe we should do a reverse comparison. How many trips to WB since ice off, and how many skunks?

For me, 9 trips to the Bay, and a perfect score of 9 skunks [:/].

May give it another go this Saturday. Wife has to work, so I got the day free. May as well spend in on the water. [fishin]
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[BURLEY]

Eight trips to WB. 1st in March yielded 20 catch & released wipers between 3 1/2-4 1/2 lb.. Only 3 crappie on next 7 trips.
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